The transition from academia to teaching students in a classroom can be challenging for student teachers. Often, they are left to create their own connections between what they learn at university and what they experience in teaching practice.
"This is one of the reasons why teacher education programmes both in Norway and internationally are often criticised for their lack of relevance to the profession," says Johan Kristian Andreasen.
He recently defended his PhD thesis at the University of Agder (UiA), ‘Partnerskap i lærerutdanning – en studie av praksislærere som lærerutdannere på universitetet’ (Partnerships in teacher education - a study of practice teachers as teacher educators at the university).
Do not see themselves as teacher educators
At the university, the teacher educators in the various subject areas are the ones responsible for teaching student teachers. In schools, the practice teachers assume this role.
"They have an important role in the education of new teachers, but many practice teachers feel disconnected and do not think of themselves as teacher educators. I wanted to see if we could make better use of their expertise," says Andreasen.
The thesis is based on the project ‘Professional Digital Competence in Primary Teacher Education’ (ProDiG), which was funded by the Ministry of Education and carried out at UiA from 2018 to 2021.
In ProDiG, thirteen practice teachers were released from their ordinary duties in schools to work 1-2 days a week at the university. There, they worked with subject teachers to develop new subject courses, teach classes, and assess students, among other things.
Beneficial to both schools and students
One of the primary objectives of the project was to enhance digital competence among new teachers.
Virtual reality, for example, was used as a tool for ethical reflection among student teachers, in a collaboration between Primary Teacher Bjørnar Solli Timenes and Assistant Professor Martin Smith-Gahrsen.
"The fact that UiA is integrating knowledge from schools and using it in its teaching makes the transition from student to teacher more seamless," says Solli Timenes.
He also sees ProDiG as a good opportunity to explore new ways to further digital teaching.
"In essence, it is a partnership that is beneficial to both schools and students," he says.
A different workday
"At first, the practice teachers were uncertain about whether they could contribute anything at a university. But when they realised that their expertise was in demand and valued, they gained more confidence," says Andreasen.
Just like students experience a big transition when moving from university to school, practice teachers experience the same when moving from school to university. They encounter a clearer hierarchy, distinct career paths for staff, and less collaborative teaching.
"The workday at the university is entirely different from that of a school. It was a big transition for both parties," says Andreasen.
Makes for a better education
The ProDiG project has yielded good results. Although the project period ended in 2021, the extended collaboration with schools continues, and several practice teachers are still affiliated with the university.
"It has resulted in a completely different kind of connection between schools and university. Thinking creatively about how to improve education has become easier when teachers from schools are already involved," says Andreasen.
Although it has been expensive to release both practice teachers and university instructors from their regular duties, he believes it is worth the investment.
"This is an area where you can quickly save some money when budgets are constrained. But I think it is important to allocate funds to this type of collaboration, especially in professional degree programmes. It presents many opportunities for enhancing the programmes," says Andreasen.
Source: Partnerskap i lærerutdanningene - En studie av praksislærere som lærerutdannere på universitetet